Tuesday, April 25, 2006

KS - promotion

In other letters, I questioned the intellect of a certain young man that had been in Europe over a year and had yet to take a photograph – he didn’t even have a camera. That situation was remedied in the first part of February 1962 and I purchased a very nice one – a 35mm, German made Voigtlander, which I still have.

This cost me $47.50 in the PX – which amounted to almost half of a month’s pay and that was the reason the acquisition hadn’t happened before that time. Starting with black and white prints and evolving into color slides, hundreds of images were taken during my remaining time over there.

From my file is a set of orders announcing that I had received a promotion from PFC (E3) to SP4 (E4) – it was dated 24 February 1962. This promotion had been delayed as a result of an incident with a British captain – that just happened to be the officer in charge of the communications center in which I worked. Even though he was in the British Army, he could make comments in areas of promotion to my superiors.

On the occasion of the incident I had become greatly inflamed emotionally by what I considered stupidity on the part of one of our operators – this incensed condition was one to which I was easily incited. This had prompted me to storm back through the doors of the maintenance shop, loudly uttering off-color and obscene words and phrases.

This type of action was not normally a problem and almost an expected thing, but on this day the British captain was back in the shop and was highly offended by the action – hence the delay in promotion. Only after a lengthy discussion with my sergeant in charge a month or so after the incident was I able to convince him to go through another channel to have my promotion approved.

Let me say that I do not celebrate the deeds and/or misdeeds of this person I was long ago, in fact it’s somewhat painful to even recall. This individual was making some very selfish and stupid choices. From high atop my present point of view I do see an influence on him of earlier incorrect spiritual training. This consisting of putting massive emphasis on what he should not do and little weight placed on the positive – the richness of the gifts that he could have had in Christ. That being said, I don’t really know if it would have made a difference.

There I was, a kid raised in church, yet I was constantly smashing the thumb of my soul with the heavy hammer of disobedience and was unable to figure out where the pain was coming from – or how to get it to stop.

4 Comments:

It probably wouldn't have made a difference. My Christian education was the positive approach and I was as stupid in my youth as anyone. I think God works on us constantly and that "the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom" is the start of a long gracious trip out of ignorance.

there's nothing like a bespotted past to remind us to walk humbly. and without it, i don't know if real compassion is possible. i, for one, would be intolerably smug and self-satisfied, if i'd never found myself with my foot in my mouth. (in fact, i manage to be that way far too often, even with a generous number of reminders why i shouldn't)

i had a fabulous Pentax camera years ago, that took the world's best pictures. set it on the bench at the Toronto zoo one day, after taking what i'm sure was the best shot of my life, and when i went back for it, it was gone. a young ostrich had got loose and run right up to me... nose to nose. i didn't have the sense to be afraid of it, (it was a good 6 feet tall) so i took its picture and told it how lovely it was, till the zoo keepers gingerly circled around us and shooed it home.

TMG - God has definitely been working on me a long time. Don't think I have made it all the way out of ignorance yet but everyday my consciousness if filled with the awesomeness of the presence of God.

bonita - So true and sometimes we have to take a few lumps and bumps along the way.

grannyfiddler - The foot in mouth disease has been an occasional ailment of mine as well. The camera is still in my closet and probably still works, it is just not automatic like the newer ones. :) ec